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Whoa, it’s blowing a hooley out there today! I couldn’t wait to get home and get something super comforting made for tea.
Risotto makes an appearance on my table nearly every week in autumn and winter in some form or other. Tonight I kept it simple and made a saffron risotto topped off with some prawns.
Regardless of what people say, you don’t need to stand over it stirring non-stop. a stir after each addition of stock is enough I find.
I bought a variety of Spice Drops a while ago so tonight got to use the saffron drops for the first time. Spice Drops are nifty little bottles of spice extract which I am finding really useful. The saffron drops are beautiful golden yellow in the bottle and give a good subtle flavour. The finished risotto didn’t keep the colour the way it does with saffron strands but it was a lovely creamy pale lemon and hey colour isn’t everything, it’s all about the taste. And it tastes delicious!
Creamy Saffron Risotto
Serves 2 greedy guts
- Risotto rice (I use carnaroli) – 200g
- Saffron Spice Drops (or pinch of saffron strands)
- Dry white wine – small bottle
- Hot chicken (or veg) stock -750ml
- King prawns, cooked – 200g
- Onions, finely diced – 2
- Frozen peas – 1 cup
- Garlic cloves, crushed or grated – 2
- Parmesan, grated – 20g
- Butter
- Olive oil
What you do
- Put two pipettes of saffron Spice Drops into the wine
- In a large saucepan, put a good drizzle of oil and knob of butter (approx 20g) in a pan and heat until butter begins to melt
- Add your onions and soften on a low heat, around 5 mins, then add the garlic and cook for another minute
- Put the risotto rice in the pan and stir so it’s covered then add the wine, season and stir
- When the wine has nearly all gone, add a cup of hot stock and stir
- Continue adding stock and stiring until the rice plumps up and softens (I had to use about 600ml of stock tonight. Sometimes it is more, sometimes less)
- Add a cup of frozen peas and a good handful of parmesan. Stir well and take off the heat
- Add a generous knob of butter and leave for two minutes
- Stir well, season and serve topped with prawns
Post Script: Gouri, the lady who has brought Spice Drops to the UK, got in touch with a tip. Rather than add the saffron drops right at the start, add them towards the end of cooking and add just 2-3 drops rather than the two pipets full. She reckons this way you need to use less because you won’t losing any of the delicate saffron flavour, or colour, to cooking. I shall certainly be trying it this way next time. I love experimenting with new products like this so am always thankful of tips and hints. Thanks Gouri!
